Story on Oswego County drug-test kits leads to donation from Florida

The Post-Standard has helped more parents in the Phoenix school district obtain drug-test kits for their families.

Phoenix Police Chief Rod Carr said a man in Tampa, Fla., who runs a company that makes drug-testing kits read a June 18 Post-Standard story about the village buying 30 more drug-test kits to give out to parents. The village had previously purchased kits and they were running low.

"He contacted us and said he has donated 25 of these kits from his company, that will be given to the Medicine Place drug store," Carr said. "All they (parents) have to do is say, 'I want one of those drug-test kits.'"

The kits will be available for any parent or guardian who wants a kit to test their children at home for illegal substances. Carr said the Know Drug Test kits, made in Tampa, test for cocaine, amphetamines, methamphetamines, marijuana, hashish and opiates.

The Medicine Place pharmacy agreed to hand out the kits, free of charge, to parents in the Phoenix school district who suspected their children might be abusing prescription drugs.

Douglas Chinchar, president of the Know Drug Test company, said "it was a great story" about what Phoenix is doing and he wanted to help.

"When you hear about people doing things to help the community you want to help," he said. "These are people who are doing the right thing."

Chinchar said it took him three years to get his test kits ready for market and his company has been selling them for just seven months. His kits cost $25 to $30 each retail.

Where his kits differ from most is that they are equipped with a magnet to hang the kit on the refrigerator. He said this makes it impossible for parents to say they've forgotten about it or kids to say they don't know about it.

"If you put it there and don't tell the kids, soon they'll notice and say 'what's that?'" he said. "I guarantee, that's the perfect time to bring up a conversation about drug and alcohol use."

The village board bought 40 of the original kits, which were snatched up quickly. The board voted to buy 35 more.

The initial kits were not from Chinchar's company.

Carr said using the kits is important as more and more kids try pharming -- when kids take prescription drugs from their parents' or grandparents' medicine cabinets and use them to get high.